NOKIA IN INDIA: FROM A SETBACK TO A COMEBACK |
Credit: Independent.ie |
NOKIA IN INDIA
• In 1994, Nokia entered the Indian market. Nokia India operated as a subsidiary of Nokia Corporation.
• In 1995, the first mobile phone call in India was made through the Nokia network and on a Nokia handset. In order to have a better understanding of the Indian market, the R&D Center was established in 2001.
• Nokia ruled the roost in the Indian mobile handset market. It launched several products specifically for the Indian market.
• Nokia also developed a wide distribution network, which helped it reach every nook and corner of the country.
A FEW MISSTEPS
• Though Nokia was doing well, the early signs of the competition catching up emerged in 2004.
• The company reported that though it was the largest mobile handset manufacturer in the world, its share was going down.
• In 2007, Apple launched iPhone which marked a breakthrough in smartphones and the iOS, a full touch screen app-based operating system, changed the way phones were being used.
• And then, to make matters worse, Google decided to partner with every smartphone manufacturer in the world via Android, which would emulate the iPhone.
THE RESURRECTION
• In 2013, Nokia launched an Android powered N1 Tablet, the manufacturing of which was licensed to a Chinese manufacturer, Foxconn.
• At that time, a Nokia spokesperson said that if the right partner was available, it would venture into smartphones, but it would happen only after 2016, after the agreement with Microsoft.
• Again, in June 2015, the CEO of Nokia, Rajeev Suri, announced that Nokia was planning to return to mobile phone business.
THE INDIAN RENASCENCE
• With HMD setting its sights on making Nokia a prominent player in the global mobile handset market once again, it started looking at India, once its key market, with renewed interest.
• Within a few months of the announcement of the launch of Nokia, HMD announced that 37% of registrations for Nokia phones and 30% of all the traffic on its global website were from India.
• Soon after its launch, Nokia 3 became highly popular in India. It was launched a month before the other Nokia's smartphones and received good reviews from customers.
• The subsequent phones also received positive feedback.
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